Politics and Production

On the production side of things, our jobs rarely involve making decisions about the overall message, goals or politics of the art work we contribute to. From production managers to stagehands, our positions have varying degrees of influence over these kinds of decisions. So how do we think about our own politics? How do political messages manifest in the decisions we make as professionals? What does “activism” or “advocacy” mean in a production context? And what happens if our responsibilities lead us to service messages we find troubling?

Conventional wisdom says that for every production, political messages are the domain of artistic departments—production departments are just the hands. Does this define a lucky few at the top of this hierarchy as the “visionaries” and “leaders” while the rest of us simply show up to use our skills to support that vision without question? Or is it a matter of simple necessity to get the work done quickly and efficiently? And either way, what does it mean for larger questions of art and advocacy?

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Technical Tools of the Trade

We'll train you for whatever lies ahead!

Technical Tools of the Trade is a program to provide low-cost, accessible, yet high-quality instruction in technical theater and design. This is made possible by Legacy funding so that we are not compromising on the needed costs to get the proper equipment and hire the top-notch working professionals that we do.

We provide workshops for children and youth, all the way to seasoned experts looking for continuing education. We also have workshops for young professionals looking to improve their marketability and for networking opportunities in a business that is typically hard to break in to.